Hannah Berry has cemented her place amongst the world’s best triathletes with a fourth-place finish at the 2025 Ironman World Championship in the lava fields of Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i, the best finish for a Kiwi female in more than 30 years.

The Mount Maunganui woman crossed the line in 8hrs 46m 25s, behind new Ironman World Champion Solveig Løvseth of Norway, who was joined on the podium by Kat Matthews (GBR) and defending champion Laura Philipp (Germany).

Berry’s fourth place was the best finish for a New Zealand female since Erin Baker was second in 1993.

The 35-year-old was 10th at last year’s Ironman World Championship in Nice, France, jumping up the leaderboard in 2025 in a race of attrition.

“I probably need a bit of time to process this to be honest, it’s unexpected and I’m probably going to get a little emotional talking about it,” said Berry.

“I had to fight really hard for it today as expected, it’s a result that I’m really proud of which is really cool.

“It was super humid, I wonder if that played a part in the crazy dynamics of the race today, I just tried to play it smart, you have to be so aware of how you’re feeling in this race because the conditions are so brutal. I just made the most of the aid stations and heaps of ice, heaps of water, and tried to race my race as I always do and it paid off,” she said.

Berry said it was special to have the best finish of a Kiwi female since one of her idols, Erin Baker, in 1993.

“Erin’s a legend in the sport, not just because she’s an incredible athlete but she’s an incredible human, someone that I very much look up to so that’s pretty special.

“I think I retired about 500 times out there today. it’s so cool to represent New Zealand on the world stage. I’ve had so many messages, so much support from back home, it means so much.”

Berry came out of the water following the 3.8km swim in 10th position, just over a minute behind Great Britain’s Lucy Charles-Barclay.

Once on to the bike Berry found herself amongst a strong group of athletes, including eventual podium finishers Matthews and Philipp.

The Kiwi athlete came off the bike in sixth position, well and truly in the mix as the oppressive conditions began to take their toll. The multiple-time Ironman and Ironman 70.3 race winner got into her rhythm early on the marathon, settling into a steady pace and chipping away at the kilometres.

As Berry pushed on those around her began to falter, with one-time race leaders Charles-Barclay – the 2023 Ironman World Champion – and Taylor Knibb – a three-time Ironman 70.3 World Champion – both forced to retire during the latter stages of the run.

In a race to the wire, eventual winner Løvseth finished just 35 seconds ahead of Matthews in second – the third closest finish in Ironman World Championship history.

To find out more about the Ironman World Championship visit: ironman.com/races/im-world-championship-kona

-Contributed content/Ironman